The Keeper
by princess-chibiusa92
Summary: Sasuke Uchiha and his cousin's Neji and Hinata are Keeper's, people who can see spirits and whose job is to steer them in the direction of the light. But what happens when Naruto, a rival of Sasuke's from school, starts seeing them too?
1. The Cousin's

The Keeper.

**AN: I wrote this in a fit of sheer boredom. Sakura is very OOC in this...but oh well. The character couples are as follows: NaruSasu KibaHina SakuLee NejiTenten InoShika and other's I'll mention along the way. I havent spent much time on it, so there's bound to be a lot of grammatical mistakes. Once again, my apologies. Anyways, enough of me babbling. Enjoy. R&R please :). They're my motivation. **

Chapter One: The Cousin's

It was one of those days. From the moment she had gotten out of bed, to the time she put her uniform on, Hinata Hyuuga knew that something was going to happen today. She just didn't know what.

It was her first day at Konoha High School, and she was frightened about the prospect of starting school in a new environment. She tugged at her white blouse (with the school crest on it), then pulled down her pleated navy blue skirt a bit so that the hem fell over her knees, and finally, checked her appearance in the mirror for what was probably the fourth time. She brought a small, pale hand up and touched her cheek. Glossy blue-black hair that was cropped short with bangs that draped over her cheeks, pale skin, brilliant blue eyes, and a skinny frame.

She supposed she was pretty in own way. But still...

She was average.

Realising this, Hinata turned away from the mirror, having given up on her appearance and sullenly made her way downstairs to the kitchen table where her cousin's were already eating breakfast. One of them, who was a in the same year as she was, immediately cast her a glare, but remained quiet. The other, who was a prestigious university student, merely gave her a blank look.

'Hinata-sama. It would be prudent of you to come and eat something' That was Neji nii-san. He was the university student; tall, pale and handsome with chestnut brown hair that was kept at an unsually long length and eyes that were the same brilliant hue as Hinata's. This striking semblance came from their respective fathers who were identical twin brother's.

Everything had all started a little over a month ago when Neji and Hinata Hyuuga had moved into the gigantic Uchiha manor to live with their cousin, Sasuke Uchiha, who now lived alone after what was quietly known betten the inner family circles as _The Itachi Incident. _

'H-hai'

Hinata perched herself down at the circular table in the kitchen, and helped herself to some peanut butter toast and cereal that was neatly layed out on the lace-ridden table that Neji nii-san had probably prepared earlier on that morning. The three of them never talked while they ate at the table, as talking was not something that Uchiha's and Hyuuga's often engaged in - unless it was detrimental, or, it had to do with a business deal, of course.

The Uchiha's and the Hyuuga's were one of the wealthiest families in Konoha; with endless business franchise's that stretched from new line clothing to state of the art electronics, and even fancy tupperware of the sort (with either the Uchiha or the Hyuuga symbol embossed in gold). Not that shallow, materialistic things seemed to matter all that much to Hinata, or Neji nii-san, or even Sasuke-kun, to some extent. After all, wasn't it ironic that for a family so wealthy and well off that they all seemed so...unhappy? 

Miserable, even.

It was with a resigned sigh that Hinata forced this gloomy thought out of her head and instead focused her attentions on what lay in store for her today in this new environment - this, new...setting that was Konoha High School.

_I only wish Neji nii-san could come with me _she thought sadly, nibbling at her piece of toast _Sasuke-kun doesn't seem like the type to even want to..._

Suddenly, the sound of keys hitting the table startled Hinata from her pondering thoughts. She glanced up to see that it was Sasuke-kun, who was now gazing at her with an stoic expression on his extremely handsome face. From the time that Hinata and Neji had moved in, he hadn't spoken to her once. Acknowledged her presence with a glare, yes, but spoken to her, no. She supposed that this was due to both she and Neji nii-san intruding in on Sasuke-kun's personal space by moving into the large manor, and especially after the brutal...incidident. But then again, she wasn't too sure of this. After all, Sasuke-kun had fast proved himself in three years to become one of the hardest people to read.

'Hinata' Sasuke said in a cool, refined tone; his pale, pointed fingers absently tapping on his keys. Hinata wondered if her cousin had a fangirl following at his - their - school. He was, after all, so beautiful that he could probably put Edward Cullen to shame. 'If you want a lift to school, I'm heading that that direction now'. He arched an delicate eyebrow at her, waiting patiently for her response.

Hinata opened her mouth a bit to reply but out of habit glanced timidly over towards Neji nii-san, who also arched an eyebrow at this proposition. 'Heading in that direction?' he reiterated coolly, leaning foward with both elbows perched on the table in front of him. If there was one thing Neji nii-san was, it was extremely perceptive. So even if Hinata could no longer read Sasuke-kun anymore, there was probably a chance he still could.

Sasuke's gaze hardened, his fingers gripping onto his keys tightly. 'Yes. Heading in that direction'

'Meaning you're not going to school straight away. Why is that?' asked Neji pointedly, who was now beginning to furrow his brows at the raven. 'I hope you've informed Kakashi of this arrangement'.

It was said without worry or concern but rather bleak condescendance. Kakashi Hatake was Sasuke's legal guardian. Once the chief advisor of Fugaku Uchiha at Uchiha Corporation, he was now the stand-in CEO until Sasuke-kun (the natural heir of Fugaku) came of age. Kakashi-san's abrupt departure from the Uchiha manor was the reason why Neji and Hinata had moved in in the first place. Hinata flicked a worrying glance over towards Neji nii-san, who continued sitting in his seat in the same challenging position. Sasuke-kun had a very volatile personality when the time called for it, so perhaps it wasn't the best of times to try and patronise him...

Sasuke scoffed, pulling his keys off the table and placing them in his navy blue school pocket. Hinata noticed that his uniform, which was almost identical to her's, had been neatly pressed. 'That, is none of your concern. And my business with Kakashi is also none of your concern'. And with that, the raven lackadaisically got off his chair, and carried his dirty dishes to the sink; casually rinsing them.

Good. So he was level-headed this morning. Talking to Sasuke-kun these days was sort of like talking to a brick wall, Hinata thought as she quietly watched Neji nii-san scowl at the raven's back. He hadn't always been this way, though. 

_Cold...apathetic...withdrawn...and difficult_. There was once a time when Sasuke-kun would actually smile. But that was becoming more of a mid-summer night's dream as that was well over three years ago now. Right after Itachi...

Hinata closed her eyes. She didn't want to think of Itachi right now.

Opening her eyes, she found herself being watched by both cousin's, who were patiently awaiting her answer. Immediately, she felt embarrassed at being thrusted under the blinding spotlight and brought a hand up to her face.

'Ano...h-hai. Sasuke-kun' she said timidly, making a move to get out of her chair (and forgetting about the piece of toast she had been nibbling on). She leaned over to briefly fix one of her long sock's before heading back upstairs to grab her cream-coloured argyle school bag. It only contained a single work book, a small water bottle, her wallet, her lunch and some rather cute gel pens. Hinata offhandedly figured that considering it was only the first day of school, that the teacher's at Konoha probably weren't going to throw anything too drastic or haphazzard at them.

When she came back downstairs, she quietly bid Neji nii-san goodbye (who in turn said nothing to her. He still seemed to be a little peeved at Sasuke-kun's rude behaviour) and left the large foyer of the manor to see Sasuke in the drive way already sitting in his jet black Koenigsegg CCX. Hinata blinked. She was sorta surprised he had even bothered waiting for her.

Sasuke started up the engine with ease when she got inside and slid into her leather seat. The car still smelt authentically brand new, but Hinata caught the faint whiff of laundry detergent and the Ocean. They sat in silence as they waited for the engine to warm up, and then finally they were off. For the next few moments, Sasuke's gaze was focused intently on the road ahead of them, but Hinata knew that by the way his left eyebrow twitched, that he wanted say something. Which was rare. She threw a discreet sideglance at him; patiently waiting for him to speak.

'I'll be at a meeting' he finally said in a sharp tone, making a left turn on Housia road; his dark bang's covering his handsome face 'So I'm going to be late attending school. Will you be alright manouvering your way around the place alone?'

Hinata's eyes widened slightly, but forcefully kept herself composed. If there was one thing Sasuke-kun disliked more than anything, it was a person without elegance or composure. And Hinata knew that by experience. After all, she had watched Sasuke-kun and Neji nii-san interact her entire life.

'Yes. I'll be fine' she replied in an even tone, smiling to herself that Sasuke-kun would actually be concerned over her welfare. Even if it were over something as trivial as High School.

Suddenly though, something blue, furry, and _cute_ popped out of thin air that made Hinata forget any feelings of gratefulness towards Sasuke. Almost out of character, she loudly gasped. Sasuke, however, scowled.

'Karin, what are you doing here?'

The Hyuuga and the Uchiha family would be nothing if they didn't have their secrets. They were a blockbuster family of unprecedented riches and wealth, but another startling thing about them was the fact that many of them were...Keepers. Keepers were people who had the strange...well, _unique_ ability to see spirits and ghosts, and so their job was to make sure that they steered the spirit forward in the right path which was the light. Some, however...

'Ohayo, Sasuke-kun!' said Karin in a loud, sickly sweet voice

Weren't that easy to be persuaded. Like Karin, for example, whose spirit in the form of a bright, royal blue _monkey_ was commonly referred to as an:

'Annoyance' deadpanned Sasuke with an irritated expression, gripping onto the steering wheel tightly 'I thought I persuaded you last week to go into the light'.

He sharply turned left at the upcoming lights ahead and finally pulled up in front of Konoha High School, which was a collossal architectural institution. Hinata's eye's widened at the sheer size of it. It was just...huge. Massive. Much bigger than the local private girl's school she had previously attended. She gazed at the structure in pure admiration; her fingers on her porcelain cheeks. Sasuke's gaze, however, was focused intently on Karin, who sat perched on Hinata's lap. He narrowed his dark obsidean eyes at her.

'Get off of her' he ordered coldly, glaring daggers at the poor creature.

That snapped Hinata right out of her reverie. Karin however, who seemed used to this kind of harsh treatment, beamed up at the stoic raven, but did as she was told. Instead, she hopped right onto Sasuke's lap, which made the raven's glare on her darken even more.

'Ano...Sasuke-kun?' asked Hinata tentatively, unsure of what to do now that they had arrived.

Sasuke seemed to notice her discomfort. With his gaze still focused intently on Karin and his hands bound tightly to the steering wheel: 'The office is located just ahead. They will give you the directions and timetable you will need. And if they have enough brains, they will assign someone to help you find your way around. I should back before lunch, so if you can find your way there, I'll meet you in the cafeteria'.

Hinata blinked, her face showing bewilderment, before she smiled serenely: 'Hai. Arigato, Sasuke-kun'. She gently opened her door, but before she got out, however: 'Oh...and if you see a certain blonde idiot roaming the hallways' Sasuke added, smirking devilishly in her direction 'Tell him I said he's still a Dobe'.


	2. Meeting Ino

**AN: I tried cleaning up the grammatical mistakes in chapter one and this one as best as I could. Anyways, thank you to those who reviewed. It's much appreciated! =) **  
**WARNING: Some of the character's are real OOC in this fic (ie. Sakura, Ino...) so you have been warned. ALSO! - Disclaimer: I do not, and probably will not, ever own Naruto. So there, I've said my peace. Enjoy! R&R too, please. **  
**  
The couples are as follows:** **NaruSasu KibaHina SakuLee NejiTenten InoShika. I'll mention other's along the way. **

Chapter Two: Meeting Ino

Hinata didn't know what to expect when she paced through the wide, open doors of Konoha High School, but she certainly wasn't expecting this. It was quite ludicrous, really. She had tediously followed her cousin Sasuke-kun's directions and headed straight towards the head office, which was a rather shabby little area over-crowded and packed with student's waiting in line. They failed to notice her presence as she walked in and stood behind a lazy looking fellow with a strange pineapple-like hairdo. Was this the look that teenagers sported these days?

Unfortunately for Hinata, who patiently waited in line amongst some of the strangest looking people she had ever come across (one even had flaming red hair and a tattoo above his forehead), by the time she reached the front office desk, the harrassed-looking secretary worker (whose name turned out to be Shizune-san) did nothing more than to  
rushingly hand over her timetable and politely shoo her off to find her first class. Alone. Hinata frowned. It was a rather cold and audacious welcoming to the environement. She wasn't impressed.

But that was only the beginning of it. Walking out of the head office to head towards a building that supposedly housed the English classrooms, Hinata studied her timetable in front of her, glancing every now and again at the signs above the buildings and classroom doors. She silently made her way into Block B, where the majority of the hallway was filled with creamy orange locker's and glanced down at her timetable again. Apparently, the English rooms were downstairs; the stairs in this case being at the end of the hallway.

'Eew. Is that a girl or a _boy_?'

Quickly, Hinata's head jolted up. The rude comment had bounced off a tall, overly-confident looking girl with bright red hair who was standing by her locker with a couple of girlfriends, who sniggered at her comment. Hinata flushed at the blunt, offensive statement, and peeled her eyes down towards her feet. Biting her bottom lip, she tried doing the proper thing, which was ignoring the hurtful jab. She then tried walking foward to get to the stairs leading down to the English rooms, but the red headed girl stopped her dead in her tracks.

Startled, Hinata whipped her head up, and looked directly into the girl's blue-grey eyes. They were cold, and vivid.

'Ano...excuse me. I need to pass' Hinata said as amicably as she could, but the girl didn't move. In fact, she seemed to be thoroughly amused in her role as school bully. 'You never answered my question before' she said in a haughty, jeering tone.

Hinata's eyes widened in horror; her fingers touching her nose. Was it common for people here to be so obtruse and rude? Oh, if only Sasuke-kun had in with her this morning...

'W-what question?' she said timidly, praying to herself that whatever she did, she would _not_ twiddle her fingers.

The red headed girl frowned down at Hinata's rather ignorant response and looked as if she were about to say something partiularly nasty, but she was inturrupted by the sound of a very pretty blonde-haired girl walking in their direction. Hinata threw a brief glance in her direction; she was short, slim and quite creamy in complexion, with long bleached blonde hair that was loosly tied up and sparkly forget-me-not blue eyes.

'Nolovoska. I thought I heard the sound of failure wafting in the air. How are we doing this fine, dandy morning?' The frost covering her words were undeniable.

The red haired girl tensed in her spot, instantaneously recognising that voice. 'Yamanaka' the red headed girl acknowledged with distaste, briefly closing her eyes before sneering over towards the blonde over her shoulder. 'I'd almost forgotten you were the advocate around here for losers'

Hinata tensed at being labelled such a hurtful word, but the pretty blonde girl seemed unfazed by this statement. When she reached them down the hallway, she coolly laid a hand on Hinata's shoulder, and snorted at the red headed girl known as Nolovoska. 'Wow. Your taunt was about as dry as a nun's pussy, Nolovoska' she said confidently with a smirk, casually flipping her bleach blonde hair over her shoulder. 'You might wanna work on that...Ranga' (1) Hinata flushed at the girl's vulgar turn of phrase.

But now it was Nolovoska's turn to flush in embarrassment at an offensive statement (even her ears went a slight shade of pink) and she pathetically glanced over her shoulder towards her two friend's by her locker for backup. By the cowardly looks of them, however, who both seemed to be avoiding Nolovoska's eye and finding sudden interest with the polished blue floors, they didn't seem to want to get involved in the debacle.

Realising this, Nolovoska angrily turned around to face Hinata and the pretty blonde named Yamanaka.

'This isn't over, Yamanaka' she hissed, gingerly scanning the hallway with her cold blue-grey eyes for who might have heard their argument. After all, gossip at Konoha High School spread around like wild fire.

Yamanaka rolled her eyes. She seemed bored. 'Right. And you're the poster girl for contraception, Nolovoska' she drawled, removing her hand from Hinata's shoulder to defensively cross her arms together.

Nolovoska turned an embarassing shade of crimson, taking a very small step backwards. Her mouth seemed to be twitching, like she wanted to say some cheap, childishly witty retort right back, but she was having difficulty forming the words. 'I...you...we're so goanna..._bitch!' _And with that, she awkwardly pivoted on the heel and left the building in the direction that Hinata had come through. Hinata anxiously watched as Yamanaka scoffed with her gaze up ahead. Her two friend's by her locker seemed to be watching their friend's departed silhouette with pathetically concerned expressions on their faces.

Yamanaka then promptly twisted her body to face Hinata, which startled her. 'You okay, there, sweetie? Don't worry about the mean things Miss _Ranga_ said earlier. None of it's true. Melissa isn't always this nasty to new people, so she must have seen you as a threat, or something. By the way, I happen to think you're _gorgeous' _She said in a bubbly, reassuring tone; winking for good measure.

Hinata smiled gratefully at her and bowed her head a little; her fingers still clutched to her timetable. 'Ano...arigato. I...appreciate it'

The girl waved off her appreciation like it was nothing. 'No biggie, no biggie. So you're new here, right? What's your name?' Hinata's eyes widened. The pretty blonde girl seemed to be genuinly curious.

'Hinata'

Yamanaka blinked. If she noticed Hinata's lack of providing a last name, she didn't show it. 'Oh, that's a pretty name' Yamanaka said in a casual, easy going manner 'I'm Ino by the way, Ino Yamanaka. So what year you in? Ten?'

'Eleven' Hinata replied easily, showing the pretty blonde girl she now knew as Ino her now crisp and wrinkled timetable. Ino gasped, her sparkling forget-me-knot blue eyes vivdly scanning Hinata's much-abused timetable. Slowly, the curve of a smile graced the pretty blonde girl's face.

_'Well_. Guess your in luck, sweetie, because you happen to share most of your classes with _me'_ She quickly glanced up at Hinata with a wide enthusiastic grin before turning her undivided attention back to the timetable. 'I didn't think you'd be in the eleventh grade; you're so petite...' A pause '...wow. And I never would have taken you for a girl who took Standard English...you _must_ be like Shika...I have to introduce you guys to one another at lunch. He has Software Development this morning, you see. The nerd. Oh, and the gang'll all wanna meet ya as well. Here's me saying I'll introduce you to just Shika...'

Hinata smiled to herself as the blonde girl yapped on like there was no tomorrow. She seemed really bubbly and kind, this...Ino.

Ino then glanced back up at Hinata with a wide, Tony award winning smile. Hinata simply smiled back at her warmly. She wondered if she should tell Ino about her relation to Sasuke, but the decided that given the circumstances, she would just go with the flow for now. After all, she had just made her first friend at Konoha High School. Besides, she knew she had plently of time to mention her cousin, and she was sure that she would see him at lunch time. Speaking of which, she had to remember that she was meeting him in the...where at lunch was it again?

Suddenly, Ino's grasp on Hinata's wrist broke her from her from any lingering thoughts. She blinked at the hand on her pale, slender wrist.

'C'mon, let's go' said Ino, hoisting her bubble-gum pink bag up with her other hand  
'I can introduce you to Chouji; he's in our English class! We better hurry, though, cause the bell's goanna ring soon. We don't need to take the stairs down the hallway over there. I know another way down there that's quicker; Shika showed me last year'.

As Hinata left the building with Ino, she failed to notice another blonde in the hallway who had been watching the entire fiasco.

(1) If you haven't seen Summer Height's High, a Ranga is generally a red head, but it's a  
real offensive, hella-funny term to use. Not recommended for use in real life. You might get the bejezus smashed out of ya. 


	3. Naruto Uzumaki

The Keeper.

**WARNING: Sakura is extremely OOC in this. If you thought Ino was bad, check her out. The couples are as follows:** **NaruSasu KibaHina SakuLee NejiTenten InoShika. I'll mention other's along the way. **

Chapter three: Naruto Uzumaki

He'd been watching the entire argument from his locker, and wasn't impressed.

Naruto didn't like the way Melissa Nolovoska spoke to the new girl at school - like she was some piece of worthless garbage in need of tossing out, and if it weren't for Ino Yamanaka's heroic interference in the nick of time, then Naruto, regardless of the conversation he had just had with Principal Tsunade earlier on that morning, would have done it so himself.

It wasn't like the new girl had done something awful to offend Nolovoska. If anything, it seemed like she was just trying to figure out where she had first period. Which was weird. Didn't teachers usually assign some nerd or whatever to help the new students find their way around? Why wasn't the old hag -

'Howdy'

Averting his gaze from the scene, Naruto twisted his body around to face his best friend, Sakura Haruno, who greeted him with a lazy smirk. Sakura was gorgeous, smart, and popular. She also happened to be incredibly lazy. So despite not showing it, seeing her face came as something of a surprise to Naruto.

'Didn't think _you'd_ be showing up on the first day'

'Yeah, well there's a first for everything. Who's the new girl?' She asked without much interest, noticing for the first time the scene unfolding down the corridor.

Naruto looked over his shoulder. 'Dunno. But Nolovoska's already trying to make her life a living hell' _Bitch_ he added in his head 'You're really goanna need to be putting a leash on her one of these days'. At West Macquarie High School, Sakura Haruno ruled as Queen of the Bitch Squad. Which meant, unfortunately, having to share her with Nolovoska.

Sakura seemed unfazed by this bit of infortmation. 'She's like that. I'm surprised though you're not in there defending the new girl's honour. You usually make a production out of these things'. Naruto watched as she leant up against the locker next to his, and allowed himself a moment to take in her nice pink hair.

He would never date her, because that would be weird. But Sakura would always be a hottie to Naruto, and he wasn't finding fault in her choice of attire today. The arm panels on her white blouse had been rolled up, and her navy blue skirt was hypocritically short. How anyone that short had legs _that_ long was beyond him.

_Ah Dayumn. _

He noticed her eyes linger over towards the blonde now acquainting herself with the new girl and followed her gaze. The cat fight was over now.

'Can't. On probation. Granny would have a fit if Nolovoska turned nasty and we were caught arguing in the hallways' He answered with a shrug, hoisting his black Dickies bag up. Brilliant green eyes suddenly narrowed in on him.

'You gotta be kidding me, Naruto. You got in a fight on the first day of school? That's a record, even for you'

Naruto frowned at this. 'Hold ya horses, I didn't do squat. The old hag put me on probation before I even got a chance to scratch my ass. She probably hopes it'll like, serve as a warning or something before I go beat some dweeb up'

From the time he had started High School, Naruto had been sent to Principal Tsunade's office almost once a week for one reason or another. Usually though, this was because he had gotten into a fight with someone. But this year, he'd been put on probation before he even got a chance to do anything. Which sucked, because Naruto had been looking forward to landing one on a certain bastard's face.

He heard Sakura let out a distinct scoff.

'Right. Like that'll stop you from exchanging fists with Emo boy'

One of the reason's why Naruto liked Sakura so much was because of her immunity to the Asshole, AKA Sasuke Uchiha. All the girls here practically swooned over the anti-social bastard, what with his apparently 'drop dead gorgeous' looks, and silent, mysterious personality. Naruto just thought he was a stuck up Emo in desperate need of a punch to the face.

Since the very start of high school, he and Naruto had been bitter rivals. Sasuke Uchiha had fast proved himself to be everything Naruto was not. He was a tall, pale, black haired, even blacker eyed, overly conceited bastard who thought he was holier than thou with anyone he crossed paths with. Naruto on the other hand was a blonde (and proud), vertically challenged, tanned, blue-eyed, totally chillaxed guy who loved being surrounded by people and attention.

Despite being total opposites, they nearly always got into fights with one another. Naruto would say something, then the bastard would say something right back - usually a remark at Naruto's intelligence, or something - and then they'd go at it for ages until Naruto got sick of this and violently launch himself onto the douche. One time, he'd even managed to make contact with the raven's ugly face.

'So you goanna befriend her?' Sakura's voice cut over Naruto's thought's like a thick knife. That, and the sudden sounding of the bell. Holding her timetable casually in front of her, which was almost identical to Naruto's, Naruto could have sworn she almost sounded curious.

He closed his locker. 'Maybe. But it probably wouldn't be such a good idea since it seems Yamanaka's already called dibs on her'.

Sakura Haruno and Ino Yamanaka had once been the very best of friends, but for some reason they had a falling out. Naruto didn't know the exact details, as this happened long before they had become mates, and Sakura didn't seem to like touching the subject as she would lock her lips and refuse to speak until the topic was changed, but to him Ino seemed like a cool enough chick. Cool enough to stand up to Nolovoska, anyways. And with class, at that.

'Hn. Probably' Was all his best friend said. Silently, she draped her arm into his like she always did and they turned to walk in the direction of first period, which was Advanced English. It was the only smart class that Naruto took, as English happened to be his niche. Or maybe it had more to do with the fact that he was a good bull-shitter on paper, but he wasn't too sure. Following the crowds of students who were heading in the same direction they were, Naruto saw a few familiar faces along the way.

'Sup, man'  
'How's it going, Subaaku?'  
'Shit. They let you back on school grounds, Aburame?'  
'Hey Akimichi, it was a mean as party on Saturday'  
'Hey, beautiful, didn't see you on Saturday'

They managed to make it to the stairs going down to the first floor before they were joined by Naruto's other best friend, Kiba Inzuka. Despite looking a little winded, the dog boy spread a wide toothy grin at the sight of them.

'Sup, Naruto. Haruno'

Pulling himself away from Sakura's grip, Naruto and Kiba exchanged a hand gesture. By now the crowds were starting to dwindle down, leaving just the three of them. Kiba was tall, athletic, and easy going. He was very similar to Naruto in terms of persona, and for that they got along like a house on fire.

Sakura cast a small sideways glance over towards Kiba, and that was about it. Naruto mentally groaned at the awkward tension that was now cast over them as Kiba and Sakura had always had this weird..."thing" going on between them. It was like they had feelings for one another, or something, but were both too stubborn to admit it out loud. Given the circumstances, and the fact that he wasn't in the mood for anymore drama today, Naruto decided to ignore it.

'Dog Breath. You're late'

Suddenly, something blue flashed past behind Kiba's head. Naruto blinked. It was gone.

'Yeah, I know' The dog boy said, running a hand through his light brown hair. Naruto, who had for a moment forgotten what was going on, quickly snapped back into reality. He decided that whatever weird thing had just zoomed past his best friend's head, was nothing more than a trick of light, or something.

'Me bloody car's stuffed again, aye. Had to pester mum for _**ages**_ this morning to drop me off at the train station in the freezing cold, and so by the time the old lady finally relents, what do you know? I miss my train'

'Sound's real tragic' Said Sakura sarcastically, rolling her eyes

'Aye, do you know where we collect our timetables?' Kiba suddenly piped up, and Naruto got the distinct impression that the dog boy had only asked him the question so as to ignore Sakura's bitter comment.

'Ah, well, I got mine from the Office, buuuut I think you can just ask Wakefield for one. I'm sure he's got stacks, dog breath' Naruto said, playing along as he pointed over his shoulder to where the Office was. Mr. Wakefield was their year advisor, whose own office was in the same direction.

Kiba grinned. 'Oh, alright then, cheers. Well, I'll catch you guys later. Youse'll be late to class if we stand here any longer'

'Hey, it's not like Richmond's thrilled to be seeing _me _anytime soon, dog breath' Naruto said dryly, remembering fully well the last time he'd been in his English teacher's classroom. It had involved a certain duck butt haired prick, a snide remark, and a compelling need to beat the crap out of him. 'But see ya. Oh! And don't forget, there's the basketball try out's at lunch' he added over his shoulder, watching as Kiba casually waved his acknowledgement over his head.

Basketball try outs were goanna be wicked this year. Naruto couldn't try out last year, or the year before because his boss had been a tool who wouldn't let him swap his shifts around. For the past three years, Naruto had worked at their local New World supermarket to help his Uncle Jiraiya (who was a complete perv that made his money off the erotic novel's he wrote) pay the rental and bills. He had moved from South Auckland when he was twelve to go and live with him here in Konoha; right after the funeral of his grandmother, Sora Uzumaki.

He still had parents who lived up those ways, but they were still fairly...young, and...light-weight sort of people; the type who hung around with the wrong crowd. Naruto didn't like thinking or talking about them much. As far as he was concerned, they were skeletons he'd rather keep hidden in the closet.

One thing he liked to brag about though was the Topaz Stone his grandmother had given him before her untimely passing. It was carved in the shape of the Infinity symbol, and Naruto proudly wore it everyday in remembrance of his Nan. It was a good chick magnet, too.

When the Dog boy was well out of sight, Naruto cast a glare over towards the pink haired girl he called his best friend. She stood in her spot absently playing with her nails and had a distinct expression of boredom plastered on her face.

'You didn't have to be such a bitch to him, you know' Naruto admonished quietly, feeling his hands make their way into his pockets.

'You don't have to be such a jerk towards Emo boy' Sakura shot back, narrowing her beautiful green eyes up at him. 'But you _are_'. Okay, now that was just a cheap shot she had used on him, and Naruto frowned at pink haired girl's sudden defensive stance before realising that they were _really _getting late to class. Pulling his old Sony Ericson out from his pocket and checking the time, Naruto's eyes's widened.

'Shit. We better get moving. Richmond gets all pissy and sarcastic when we rock up real late' 


	4. Sasuke and Naruto

The Keeper  
**  
WARNING: Sakura is extremely OOC in this. If you thought Ino was bad, check her out. The couples are as follows:** **NaruSasu KibaHina SakuLee NejiTenten InoShika. I'll mention other's along the way.**

Chapter Four: Sasuke and Naruto

Sakura said nothing to this but lift a shoulder, and so they continued on walking downstairs in the tense silence that now surrounded them. Luckily for Naruto, they were easily able to find their classroom once they descended the ground floor through the loud bellowing of their overly dramatic English teacher, Mr. Richmond.

'Great' Naruto groaned, leaning his head backwards 'It's not even 10 and the weirdo's in Shakespeare mode'

Sakura smirked.

Sakura looked positively bored as they entered the room, with Naruto following suit behind her. Upon entering, he looked around and was surprised to see that the class was chock full of faces he had either ignored for the past three years, or hadn't been in any of his classes until now. Great, so what was the point of being popular if you had no friends (minus one bad-tempered best friend) in your classes?

It appeared that Mr. Richmond (who was a grey, flamboyantly eccentric man in his mid-fifties) was just finishing up on roll call as he closed a hot pink folder and began shuffling a few stacks of untidy papers on his desk. At the sound of their close arrival, though, the older man glanced up towards them with his glasses perched half-way down his nose and and an expression on his face that suggested he wasn't overly surprised by their late arrival.

'Ah, so it seems Mr. Uzumaki and Miss Haruno have finally decided to grace us with their presence. How lovely' His tone was drenched in irony, but given the circumstances, Naruto wasn't goanna be the one to back chat.

'Morning, Sir' He greeted in his usual airy, cheerful manner 'How's it goin? You have a good holiday? I sure as hell did' And with that, he habitually crossed his arms behind his head.

As he said all of this, Sakura quietly manoeuvred herself towards the back of the classroom, where she perched herself on a seat to a girlfriend. Said girlfriend who happened to be _really_ cute. What was her name again? - Tenten, or something?

'It was splendid, Naruto' Oh, that's right. He had been talking to the teacher. 'I only hope that over the holidays _you_ managed to learn the exercise of self-restraint'. Shit. He had a point there.

Mr. Richmond didn't look amused with Naruto's dry attempt at greasing up to him, but it didn't stop Naruto from smiling at him all the same. 'No worries, Sir, I'll be on my best behaviour this year' he said casually with a salute, before deciding to get a move on.

_Yeah, it was probably splendid for you, alright_. Naruto thought as he made his way over towards the back rows _You probably spent your entire time at home knitting socks for orphans or something equally boring_

Naruto suddenly stopped in his tracks. He had been about to move to the back of the classroom where Sakura was sitting when he realised that there were hardly any seats even _left_ in the room. Shit, he hadn't realised that at first. Sakura had though. Casting the pink haired girl he called his best friend a disbelieving look, he was surprised to find himself graced with a snigger on her behalf.

_The bitc..._ It was no wonder she was friends with Nolovoska!

Resigned, Naruto made his way over towards the only free table (directly parallel to the teacher's too, at that) and plonked himself down. He was lucky it was next to the window.  
Lazily, Naruto pulled out his dodgy work book and the one pen he always carried around with him, but out of sheer boredom paid no notice to Mr. Richmond as he droned on about something and began leaning back and forth in his chair like his owned it.

He didn't give a rats if Richmond told him off, or not. Anything would be better but this.

_I want Miso Ramen. Eight bowls of it. And I want it from Ichiraku's, not from some cheapo packet._

And then he saw it. Peeking out from the corner of the outside school window, it was small, royal blue, and very much resembled what Naruto could only describe as a -

'Come in, Mr. Uchiha. You're late'

Peeling his eyes away from the window in something of a daze, Naruto glanced around to find his gaze land on none other than the bastard, Sasuke Uchiha, who was standing next to the open door with a green late slip in his hand and a what looked like a very stoic expression on his face.

Naruto scowled, forgetting about the strange blue creature he had just seen. It could have been a trick of the light for all he knew. Besides...the bastard still looked as posh and up himself as ever, what with his perfectly styled hair and his uniform all neatly ironed and tucked in. Naruto could see from the corner's of his eyes some of the girls in the classroom eyeball him greedily.

_Asshole. And here I thought he was above flaunting school rules._

Sasuke said nothing to Mr. Richmond other than to hand his green slip over to him. With that, Naruto noticed the blonde eye's scan the room and was deeply satisfied to see the blonde's face harden once his eyes landed on him. __

That's right, there was only one spot left in the room, and it was next to him. But Naruto didn't give a crap about that. Asshole could sit on the floor, for all he cared. Apparently though, Naruto's glare wasn't as good as he thought it was, because the raven steered himself towards him regardless of the death stares he was receiving that clearly spelt 'Come ten feet near me, and you'll cop it'.

'Morning, Sasuke' Said a very game girl named Alex West. She was bluntly ignored. Naruto had to hand it to the poor chick for trying, but still, he resented every girl in school who was stupid enough to see the sun shining out of that idiot's ass.

'Dobe. I see that they let you enter the eleventh grade' Sasuke said by way of greeting as he reached their desk, smirking in that overly conceited way that was typical of him.

'You aint sitting here, teme' Naruto growled as the blonde went to pull his chair out.

Sasuke scoffed, making no move to stop his actions. 'Don't bother speaking if stupidity is all you have to offer. I see that even over the holidays, nothing's changed in that department for you'

In a swift move, Sasuke swipped all of Naruto's belongings to his side of the table, and promptly sat himself down, making sure his posture was perfectly straight, neat and composed.

Naruto glared him his side of the table, slamming down on his chair and catching a whiff of laundry detergent and the Ocean. 'I'm not stupid' he denied through clenched teeth, watching Mr. Richmond blabber on with his body turned towards the Whiteboard through his peripheral vision

Sasuke cast him a look that gave Naruto reason to believe he clearly thought otherwise. 'That's extremely debatable' he said in a low, jeering voice.

Naruto scowled. 'What the hell is that supposed to mean?'

Sasuke flicked him a brief glance, taking his expensive school items out of his leather satchel. 'Exactly what it sounds like. Or is your skull _that _thick you can't even grasp where I'm getting at?'

Naruto's voice started getting louder. 'I understand where you're getting at, you stupid  
bastard - '

'Being called stupid by _you_ is ironic'

'Boys!' yelled Mr. Richmond as he turned around from the Whiteboard and slammed a heavy book onto his desk that made half the class jump and Sasuke glare away.

'You two can't even go _five minutes_ without starting an argument! I thought that perhaps the holidays might have changed all of that, but you've clearly both proven yourselves otherwise, and it's starting to become a real liability in my classroom. Naruto, you're the catalyst. Pack your things up, and get the hell out. You're going to the Principal'

'No!' Quickly, Naruto sobered up and made an 'X' gesture with his arms that opposed this. 'I can't be sent to the old hag, Sir, she'll kill me'. It was true. The conversation Naruto had had with Principal Tsunade wasn't a pretty one. He was on the verge of _expulsion_ from the outstanding number of fights and misdemeanours under his belt. If he was sent to her office one more time, just _one_ more, then -

'Yes, Naruto. I heard about your probation this morning' Mr. Richmond said dryly, fixing his glasses up 'But frankly, you've done nothing but - '

'We'll keep it quiet'

Shocked, Naruto glanced over to see that the bastard, whose glare was for once not directed at him but their English teacher, had willingly stuck up for him. What was up with this guy? Was he on crack? The holidays couldn't have possibly given him enough time to grow a conscience, surely...

Mr. Richmond gave his best student a wary look, before closing his eyes and opening them again 'I see. Well in that case, then, in the matter pertaining to Belonging it is detrimental to take into account...' 

'You got yourself into a fight on the first day of school? Isn't that a bit rich, even by your  
low standards?' Sasuke queried with distaste, eyeing Naruto as he tried avoiding having to face him.

Naruto scowled down at his work book in front of him. He didn't like being questioned by the raven. It all sounded suspiciously similar to what Sakura had said to him earlier on in the hallway. 'Just to set the record straight, teme, I wasn't in no fight. I was put on probation before I even had a chance to flex my arms. The old hag's gotten paranoid. She think's I'm like, this stray dog that might run lose at any minute'

Sasuke smirked, leaning his elbows on the table 'I have confidence in her opinion. She is, after all, a Professional in this business' Great, and so he was back to being all haughty and prick-like.

'Screw you, Teme'

Sasuke scoffed, glancing over towards the Whiteboard where Mr. Richmond was scribbling down notes. 'No, thank you. I've got better things to do in my time'

Naruto's eyes widened animatedly. _Oh, you - _

He had been about to seriously give the duck butt a piece of his mind before he noticed the strange blue thing again hovering around the hallway outside of his classroom. It was little, and ferrety, but had the distinct resemblance of a...a _monkey_.

'What the hell...?' Naruto muttered under the breath, sparking Sasuke's attention on to him.

The raven said nothing to him, other than to follow his gaze.

By the way his eyes widened slightly, Naruto knew that he wasn't the only who could see it. 'What the hell _is _that thing?' Naruto whispered, leaning towards Sasuke. He looked around to see if anyone else could see it, but everyone else seemed focused on listening to Mr. Richmond drone on about _Belonging_.

'I don't know what you're on about' Sasuke snapped, turning his attention back towards  
the Whiteboard with steely eyes. 'If I didn't know any better, I'd say you needed to be placed under psychiatric examination'

'Oh, fuck off, Teme' said Naruto angrily, watching Mr. Richmond's back with a careful eye 'I know you saw what I saw'

Asshole seemed adamant though at sticking to his story.

'Dobe. I understand that it is vital you simpletons have creative outlets, but would you mind pestering someone else who actually gives a damn. I have work to do' And with that, he started writing down the notes on the board, but Naruto got the feeling he was just making excuses.

Naruto fumed in his seat, watching the blonde with indignation. The arrogant...the stupid bloody...he was so goanna cop it at lunch time when Naruto rounded all the boys and -

'Take a picture while you're at it. It'll last longer'

_Huh. _

It took a moment for Naruto to realise that the comment had been directed at him, and that yes, it had come from the bastard, who was looking down at his notebook with a smug smile attached to his stupid face.

He had been staring. He had been staring at him and he didn't even _realise_ it. _Shame._  
Naruto felt so embarrassed at having been caught that...he couldn't even come up with a...he was suspended in a moment of sheer...urgh, shame, shame, shame, shame, _shame!_

Distraught by this, Naruto quickly scanned around the room to see who might have heard it. Everyone was now involved in class work of some kind - even Sakura, who sat in her seat with her chin resting in her hand and her eyes glued to her work book. Naruto only hoped that by a matter of divine intervention, that she and her hot mate didn't hear -

'Naruto?'

Breaking him from his thoughts, Naruto turned around to see that Mr. Richmond, who had been watching the exchange at some length, now affected a look of deep concern towards him. Heh. That was a first.

'Yeah?' Naruto asked, dumbfounded

'Are you alright? You look a little...' Mr. Richmond seemed to be searching for the right word. He looked uncomfortable, and his hand covered his mouth like he was afraid he might say the wrong word.

Naruto frowned. _Do I __look __alright? _

Looking at Mr. Richmond though, he said otherwise.

'Yeah, I'm fine, aye, Sir. It's just this asshole over here' Naruto said, jerking his head over towards a now peeved Sasuke 'Out of all places to sit his Emo ass down, he _has_ to sit with me'

Okay, so maybe there weren't any other seats in the room where the bastard could have stalked off to. But Naruto didn't care, he just didn't want him sitting next to him. Capadre? 

'You should be flattered. Not everyone is willing to put up with your infantile antics'

'What the hell was that, Teme!' Naruto demanded angrily, leaning his fist over towards the blonde.

If Sasuke was intimidated in any way, he didn't show it. Instead, he rolled his eyes and sighed at Naruto like he was some annoying child that needed attending to.

'Do you think I would waste my time sitting next to an moron like you if I had a choice?'

Naruto was caught off guard by the question. _Do you think I would waste my time..._He stopped and regarded the raven with angry eyes, but decided to take another route.

'Sir, I really think you should send him over to see the old hag. Or a therapist, at that. He's so _rude_, he's even eavesdropping in on other people's conversations'

Sasuke flickered a glare over towards Naruto. 'I wasn't eavesdropping' he justified coolly to their teacher, despite his gaze still being on Naruto 'Loudmouth over here was screaming his conversation the entire time'

_'Boys' _Mr. Richmond tried reprimanding, but his voice fell on deaf ears.

Naruto gasped, affronted. 'I'm not _loud_, you asshole!' 

'Understatement of the year. My ears bleed everytime you bellow' Sasuke deadpanned, resting his chin in his palm

Naruto drew in a deep breath. 'Oh, yeah? Loudmouth, eh? How's about we take this outside and see whose the _loudmouth_ when they're screaming from the pain of getting their ass handed to them!'

Sasuke arched an eyebrow 'Is that a challenge?' he asked, smirking

Naruto scowled at the nerve of him. 'Oh, just you wait, you Tem - '

Suddenly, there was a loud crashing noise outside the hallway, which caught the attention of both Naruto and Sasuke. Everyone else however seemed to be oblivious to the noise, as they continued on doing their work without so much as an simple acknowledgement.

Startled by this, Naruto looked at Sasuke, who seemed intent on glaring at the open door.

'I need to be excused' he muttered quietly. 


End file.
